Chapter 2

As was my habit, I beat my alarm by about 10 minutes. At some point during the night, Maki had snuggled up to me. Laying on my back, my left shoulder had become her pillow. Laying on her side, her shoulder was under my left arm. Her arm was draped across my chest and her left leg was crooked across my crotch, her knee was against my scrotum with my morning hard-on laying along her thigh. Her soft snoring into my chest sounded almost like a purr. Through my T-shirt I could feel the tip of one of her unusual nipples moving ever so slightly, against my ribs. My left arm lay along her back ending where my hand cupped her bare left buttock. My thumb nestled comfortably between the two nether cheeks. I was so comfortable that I think it took almost a full minute before it came to me. That butt was nude. My hard-on was laying full length against her thigh. This was little Maki - whom I thought of as a minor. Looking at my alarm, I had only three minutes before it would sound. I didn't want her waking up in this position. Okay, I'll admit it, I was nervous and afraid of the situation.

Thinking quickly, I loosened the blankets covering us. Gently lifted her arm from my chest and placed it on her own hip. Then, while gently pulling downward on the butt cheek I was cupping, I raised one leg slowly lifting her leg off of my crotch. When I had lifted her leg about six inches, she suddenly rolled away from me, across and off my hand, dragging the blankets with her, she ended facing away from me. The cooler air of the apartment hitting my bare skin was a shock. Gently I got up from the bed and turned off the alarm before it sounded. Just because I had to get up at 5 did not mean she had to.

Moving to the Kitchen alcove, I dropped the curtain and turned on the light. Pouring myself a cup of coffee I decided to add another half cup of hot water to the pot for my second cup. Carrying my coffee with me I headed for the bathroom, my tented underwear leading the way. As I sat on the throne, I turned the shower on and let the water warm. As I finished, I almost flushed (again) before moving to the shower, but remembered in time. I carried my cup with me into the shower and sipped a few times as I bathed. I loved that little tiled window sill, gave me a handy spot for my shampoos and morning coffee cup. Damn, going to the bathroom and showering - neither helped. My compass needle was still rigidly pointing straight out north. I finally soaped up and took matters in hand.

Five minutes later and a final rinse, I stepped from the shower and flushed the toilet. My coffee cup was getting low, but I decided to complete my rituals before refilling. Shaved and teeth brushed, I stepped into the hallway and dressed in fresh underwear and my uniform. I pulled down all the towels hanging in the bathroom, dry now, and put them in my laundry bag. I hadn't put on my shoes yet, though I needn't have worried. Stepping back into the main room, I found the bed folded up, and the bedding folded neatly on the sofa's arm. Stepping into the kitchen, I said "Good morning, Maki".

She was sitting at the table, in what I was coming to accept as her normal 'in house' dress, panties and T-shirt, the same white set from last night, a cup in front of her. She stood, croaking "Finally!" no I hadn't imagined that 'froggy' voice, and rushed from the room, one hand buried against her crotch. I was laughing softly, as I poured my second cup.

I had 20 minutes left as I pulled the curtain aside and tied it back. By the time she came out I had completed my preparations, the bedding was put away and things were generally straightened. When she came out, she had my toothbrush in her mouth. It reminded me that I needed to replace the ratty thing, I made a mental note to finally stop and buy a couple of new ones. She rinsed at the sink then stepped up behind my seat and hugged me from behind, kissing my cheek and saying, "Good morning, Ray," before finally sitting again. Looking at the clock, I had seven minutes left.

I reached across with one hand and gently raised her chin, Pushing her hair back over her shoulder I gently traced the path of fine scars on her neck, before setting my arm back on the table. "I have a couple of questions, this morning. These may be awkward for you and you don't need to answer unless you want to. I will only ask them once and won't bring them up again, all right?" She nodded. "The scars on your neck and stomach are from the accident that took your parents, I guess. Is that what also changed your voice?"

"Yes, my vocal chords were crushed and some cut in the accident. Because of the coma and them not expecting me to live, they didn't try to repair them right away. By the time they knew I would live, It was too late to fix them. Things had healed or scarred over so they could not."

"It is the sound of your voice, and the jokes of the kids at school that make you not want to talk, of course. Second question: Wednesday night, I woke up twice and was able to help you. I'm glad I could help, but what had to wake me, both times, was you calling out my name. Why did you call for me?"

She looked stunned for a few seconds, then asked, "How did you know?"

"Actually, I didn't, then, but thinking about it yesterday and last night, I realized you had to of called my name. I have what may be odd sleeping habits, to most people. I can sleep through military jets taking off, combat going on around me, nearby accidents and even people running around in panic and screaming, all without waking. But, there are certain things that always wake me. The phone, a knock on my door, opening the door of the room I'm in, anyone trying to move quietly trying 'not' to disturb me, wakes me up. Any touch, when I'm sleeping alone, and anyone calling my name. All of these things will bring me instantly and totally awake. I may not move, but I 'am' awake and alert. Last night, for the first two hours, every time you moved in bed, you woke me up. After that I was accustomed to your sleeping and movement habits and I didn't wake up. Wednesday night, none of that could have happened, except for hearing my name. Even hearing it whispered or so softly no one else would recognize it wakes me. My question though, is still, Why me? Why my name?"

She sat silent for more than a minute. I'd just decided that she wasn't going to answer when she did. She dropped her gaze to her cup of coffee and a blush appeared on her cheek as she said, "I called for you because I 'like' you. I like and 'trust' you, I have since almost the first time I saw you and you tried to introduce yourself to me. I don't know why, I just 'do'. I trust you like I trust no one else who lives here, no one else I know."

Damn, that was heavy. I hadn't expected anything like that. I know I had to be sitting there with my mouth hanging open and a stunned look on my face. Thankfully, she was still staring at her coffee, she hadn't looked up. After a few moments to recover some, I put my hand under her chin and raised her head so she looked me squarely in the eyes, I held that for a long moments before I gave her a smile and stood up. It was time to leave, and I spoke back over my shoulder as I gathered the last of my gear and donned my coat. "Well, I asked for an answer and I got one, didn't I. I'll be honest, it was more of an answer than I expected. I do have to go to work now. You'll have to talk to Brewster again this morning. Tell him about the heater and tell him there is a mouse nest in that filthy mattress he loaned you, I saw the hole and some droppings when I got your clothes last night. So, you need heat and something new to sleep on. See if he can help. Also, ask him straight out, just 'when' everything will be fixed and corrected so you can have a real apartment again."

Pausing with my hand on the door and looking at her I added, "Maki, you also need to ask, if he can't help today, if there is anyplace else you can stay until the repairs are made. I want you to know I'm not trying to get rid of you. If there is no other place for you, you are welcome here, we'll work something out. But to many people it might not look right if you stay here, so you have to ask." Was I really worried about her reputation, or about mine? To this day I'm not 100% sure which. When I remember and think about it, my mood at the time will determine my answer.

I turned and opened the door, and Maki was standing behind me. She put her arms around me and hugged tight saying, "Thank you, again Ray. I really mean that. I don't know who else I could have turned to." I put my arms behind me, around her and pulled her to my back gently.

"We'll talk tonight. This is my last day shift, then I have three days off. We'll see if we can do something." I disentangled myself and reached for my wallet. Removing my spare room key I handed it to her saying, "Here, you'll need this today. I hate leaving my door unlocked, so lock it any time you leave. At least this way, you won't lock yourself out." Then I was out the door. It was Saturday, no back office to deal with. Hopefully it would be a good day at work - it wasn't. I knew I was working as the Desk Sergeant today. The day started to go bad as soon as I walked onto the Desk and found someone had used 'my' coffee cup and not cleaned it. From there it was all downhill and I was aggravated as hell by the time I got off that afternoon.

I did remember to stop and buy toothbrushes. I bought three. One for me, one for Maki, and a spare. If Maki was back in her own place or somewhere else, I had two spares. No problem either way, they would get used, eventually. Quite honestly, I did hope that Maki 'was' out.

During the day I had decided that she must somehow be sexually or emotionally attracted to me. I wasn't sure I wanted all the complications of a teenager being infatuated with me, in any form. They were usually too inexperienced, too forward and indiscreet in such circumstances. They could also be dangerously spiteful and vindictive. Any attraction could as easily turn to dislike and hate. I'd seen it a few times, and experienced it once. I 'was' worried. By the time I arrived at the apartment, I had calmed down from the day. It's surprising what a 30 - 40 minute drive will do for you sometimes. I had found a calmness and was mostly ready to take things as they came. But I also knew that the day's anger and frustrations were just below the surface. I was in an explosive mood, and I knew it.

I tried knocking on Brewster's door. No answer. Maki's door was still held closed by my handkerchief. I knocked, no answer, I didn't open it. I entered my apartment, everything was off and dark. I saw none of her clothes and thought she'd relocated. I headed for the bathroom with the toothbrushes. The door was closed, but with Maki gone or out, I pushed the door open and started to step in. There was Maki, naked, backside to the door, one foot on the floor, one on the toilet seat. She was shaving her legs, the one on the floor seemed done. She was bent well forward over the other, working around her ankle. My view was a horny man's dream, tight little ass cheeks slightly spread, thick labia fully in view with the tip of her clit showing through at the bottom. Her movements as I stepped in, somehow made the little brown eye of her anus seem to wink at me. She jerked and yelped, my unexpected appearance had made her nick herself. She straightened and half turned, saying, "Couldn't you knock?" she didn't try to cover or hide herself in any way.

"Sorry," I said, starting to back out the door. "I didn't think anyone was here..." Then, I saw the razor in her hand and looked at the sink. It was 'my' razor!! I almost exploded. But I caught myself before I said anything and left, closing the door behind me. 'Damn!', I thought. 'Now I need a new razor.'

Look, I apologize to all the women and feminists out there. But I've never torn my face up so badly shaving as I have after women have used my razors to shave their legs. New blade or no, the entire razor always seems to be affected and it doesn't ride my face right anymore. I've heard all of the arguments about how it's in my head, and how a new blade is all it needs, but at the time and for some years before and after this, I used an injector razor. After a female uses one on her legs, they don't seem to hold the blade correctly, no matter how many times you change it.

Luckily, that day when I opened the closet and dug out my 'spares' box, I found I already had a new razor waiting. I dropped the new 'spare' toothbrush in the box and carried the razor and two brushes into the kitchen putting them on the table. Digging out some hamburger, saltines and a few items from the cupboards and 'fridge, I quickly put together a meat loaf and stuck it into the oven. Digging into the cupboards, I took down a bag of noodles, can of veggies and jar of beef gravy. Then I cleaned the tools I'd used for the meatloaf, setting them to drip dry. When I turned around, Maki was standing in the archway watching me. She was in another set of matching panties and T.

"Dinner will be ready in about an hour," I said, digging two bottles of coke from the fridge. After opening them I handed her one and went to turn on the TV. She sat at the far end of the sofa, putting her legs across the cushions. Her feet were only inches from my leg. I noticed the small piece of toilet paper on her ankle where she'd nicked herself. Rubbing one of her calves for a moment I said, "Hmm, nice and smooth, but," touching the small piece of paper, "it looks like you nicked yourself." She stuck her tongue out then grinned. "Seriously," I said, "I didn't mean to walk in and startle you. When I came in and found everything off and didn't hear any sounds, I thought the place was empty. Did you have a chance to talk to Brewster, today?"

"Why do you call him that? I've never heard you call him mister, or John, just Brewster."

"Honestly, it's a military habit. With co-workers, and people we have to deal with regularly, we often use only the last name. Ranks change, and using first names is often not acceptable, but last names are almost always Okay, except with officers, then a blanket Sir or Ma'am works. It's not always the best habit, but it's only a habit. I've talked to him about it and he said he understands. Don't avoid the question though, did you talk to him?"

"Yes. He doesn't have another heater or bed, he's been out all afternoon trying to find something, at least that's where he said he was going. Before you ask, I talked to him about staying someplace else. His wife doesn't want me in their apartment, she thinks that if my own family won't accept me, there must be something wrong with me. 'I' refuse to stay with the Greenstones. They are always drunk and fight a lot - they scare me. The Wheatleys and the Smiths downstairs are afraid I'll steal from them - I am a teenager and I'm poor, so I might be a thief. Cathy would help, but her place is like ours, one fold out bed, and as big as she is, she uses all of it. Sue and Brenda next door say they'll let me use the couch, but every time I see them, they are trying to touch me somehow. They always pat me on the bottom and tell me how cute I am. They scare me more than the Greenstones. I'd rather have no heat, than them. If you tell me to leave, I'll stay in my own apartment." She was almost crying when she finished and I saw a tear building in her eye.

"Well, I won't put someone out in the cold," I said. "We'll work something out. But first, another question for you. With near frostbite conditions your body dehydrates, and afterwards, dry skin is often a problem. Have your been drinking plenty of water today? and has your skin seemed dry or scaly today? You would probably have noticed it most during your shave."

"Yes, I've had three or four glasses of water today. You said last night I needed to drink water, so I have been. But, yes. My skin has seemed dry today. Can I do something about that?"

"Actually, you can. Two things, though in the apartment I only have things for one of them. If you get into the hall closet, you will find some skin lotions. Corn Huskers is best, but is also the nastiest to work with. The Jergens lotion works slower, but rubs in easier and smells better after. Get one of them, put your hair up, and rub it in over every inch of your body. When you're done, wash your hands and come to dinner, It should be ready by then."

"What is the other thing I can do?"

"Well, you can put moisturizing beads into a tub full of very warm water and simply soak in it for fifteen or twenty minutes. It helps restore moisture to dry skin. Tell you what, after dinner I had plans to go see a movie tonight. You can come with me, and we will stop and buy some on the way."

She looked down glumly and said, "I can't afford to buy something like that, let alone pay for a movie. There's no room in my allowance for things like that."

"First, I didn't ask you to pay for either. I'm inviting you to the movie, so I expect to pay for it. As for the bath beads, I'll buy those too. Your only problem, is putting up with 'my' choice for a movie. We will be seeing a new Kung Fu karate movie that came out last week. I usually try to go to the theater twice each month. The Drive in over by the river has heaters to rent for your car. On Saturdays they always show a double feature. I don't know what the second movie will be, but I've made friends with the manager and he always lets me stay for the second movie free."

"You'll take me to a movie? I haven't been to a movie since last spring. Thank you," she was almost squealing as she tried to move in for a hug.

I let her squeeze my neck for a minute, then pulled her arms away saying, "If you are going to get that moisturizer rubbed in before dinner, you'd better get to it." I was feeling good about making her this happy, and being honest with myself, I wasn't sorry that she hadn't found another place to sleep. I was still leery of the situation, but I was also glad she was there. Moving into the kitchen I started the Veggies over low heat, they should be ready with the meatloaf. I prepped a pan of water for the noodles and set them on medium-high. 7 to 10 minutes to a boil and I could add the noodles. Opening my 'snacks' cupboard, I opened a bag of cookies. Taking a half dozen, I poured the rest into my cookie jar. Then I returned to the main room.

When I turned around I saw her right away. I couldn't miss her. Maki had brought a towel to the living room and was sitting cross legged on it as she started rubbing the skin lotion in. Her panties and T-shirt were laying on the carpet beside the towel.

"You little shit," I said, though I was grinning.

She looked up, all innocence and said, "What?"

"A young lady doesn't sit naked in front of a man she hardly knows and start rubbing herself all over. I thought you would do that in the bathroom. People normally frown on such behavior. It's bad enough that you are running around in your underwear all the time. Speaking of which, just why are you wearing only your underwear around me anyway? Not that 'I' mind, but I am wondering."

She was pouting when she answered. I thought for a minute she was actually going to cry. "I'm sorry, I didn't think it would offend you. I'll go back to the bathroom." and she started gathering her things.

"Stop!" I said, more sharply than I'd intended. "You stay right where you are." I walked over to her and sat down in front of her. She was staring intently at the carpet between us. "Look at me." She did. "Now, I'm not angry, and I'm definitely not offended. I meant most of what I said as a joke, not to be mean. But, some of your habits are not things I am used to. Young women, as a rule don't show their body to a man they hardly know. They seem to consider their underwear as sacred objects that men and boys aren't to see, unless they are teasing them, or are romantic with them. I don't care how you dress, or don't dress. But anyone seeing you right now would go nuts - to use their words - 'It's just not done, it's not decent'. As for my question about your wearing only underwear, I already figured out that it was how you always dressed in your own place. I was just curious, that's all. You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

A single tear rolled down her cheek and she looked down before she answered. "I wear only my panties and T-shirts in the apartment because I'm really kind of clumsy. I often accidentally spill things on myself. I'll be watching TV or reading and spill Kool Aid on me, and I usually sit on the sofa and eat from my lap. I'm always spilling my food in my lap. When I first moved in, I ruined some shirts and pants by staining them badly. Because my allowance is so low, I can't buy new pants and shirts too often, and even in a thrift shop or at the Salvation Army, they cost me more than I can afford too often. My undies, I can buy at five for a dollar, and T-shirts are three for 75 cents. They are much cheaper to replace. I do spend more on them than I maybe should, though. I like them to match, and I don't like wearing just white. The ones I usually buy are matching sets, usually for 50 to 70 cents a set. So, the reason I dress like that is because I'm clumsy."

"I also want you to know I always keep pants and a shirt handy for when someone comes to the door. People almost never come to my door, though. I don't dress like that in front of everyone." At some point while she was talking, I moved back to the sofa, and she started rubbing the lotion into her skin again. She had finished her arms, shoulders and neck before she continued. "You asked why I am doing this here, in front of you," Thank god she wasn't looking at me while she worked on herself. She was working on her chest and stomach, and I was definitely getting a boner from watching her. "I might, normally do this in the bathroom, out of sight. But, you have already seen me naked. You have looked closer at me than most doctors or nurses will. So you know my body already. I wanted you to see what I was doing so you could tell me if I am doing any of it wrong. Am I doing it right?"

"If you weren't, I would have already told you. As for my looking at you more closely than a doctor, I was looking for signs of frostbite, trying to decide how severe it was, and if I should get you to a hospital. Had I been a doctor, I would have looked even more closely than I did. I might also have had thermometers in your mouth and your ass. Maybe even one under your arms. But I don't have any thermometers, and I'm not a trained doctor, the results would not have meant much to me."

"Why would a doctor take temperatures in so many places? And, how come you know what you do about frostbite. anyway?"

"Well, Doctors know about body temperatures. Doctors know what range of temperatures is acceptable. As for how I know about frostbite," I said standing and moving towards the kitchen. It was time to cook the noodles and start heating the gravy. "I know about frostbite because I had frostbite when I was 12 years old. I was ice skating with friends, back home in Michigan, and accidentally knocked myself out. We had been playing tag in s swampy area and I fell out of sight. I lay unconscious in below zero temperatures for over three hours before I woke up and went home. People were out looking for me, but I was almost home before I met someone. I still remember them having to cut my underwear off. My father did for me, what I did for you. I didn't fully regain feeling in my hands and feet for days afterwards. That is why I was happy when you really 'felt' the water cooling last night. It was a very good sign."

The gravy started to boil. I stirred it and reduced the heat. I also opened the oven and took some drippings from the pan to add into it. "Are you almost done there? We'll be eating in five minutes."

When I turned to look, she was working on one of her feet. She looked up and said, "Almost, I have gotten everything but my back, and I don't think I can do that without help. Will you do it for me?"

"After dinner. Get dressed and clean up. I'll have food on the table when you're ready. Turn off the TV and turn on the radio. We might as well have music while we eat."

We ate silently and listened to the music. It was a rock and roll station, but they were in the middle of some love song hour, and the softer music was nice with the meal. After dishes, I sat in the center of the sofa with Maki laying across my lap as I rubbed the lotion into her back. The T-shirt was off, but she did keep her panties on this time. When I was done and she was back in her T, I asked her, "Did you do your butt?"

"I rubbed some into the cheeks."

"Go into the bathroom and do them again. Get right down into the crack and rub it in good. The inside of your cheeks looked very dry to me when I checked you yesterday. For the next few days, You should used the bath beads at least once a day, and do this at least once a day. In a few days, everything should be back to normal. When you're done, comb your hair and get dressed. It's almost 6:30 and we should think about leaving. The movie starts at 7:15.

When we got in the car and started out, Maki gripped the shoulder harness and held on for dear life as I drove. When I asked, she had only been in her Uncle's car since the accident, and that only once. We stopped by a market enroute to the Drive-in. I bought an economy bubble bath with moisturizers. Maki was surprised at how cheap it was. At the theater, we parked just in time for the previews and all the little dancing concessions. There were no more than 15 - 18 cars in the lot.

I made a quick trip to the concession stand for popcorn and pops. Then we settled back to watch the movie. Part way through, Maki tried to lay her head against my shoulder, but the bucket seats made it not to comfortable for her. I had a travel pillow in the back seat. It looked like a large teddy bear's head, but it was handy for naps on the road. I placed it between the seats, over the hand brake and Maki moved closer leaning against my shoulder. The heater we'd gotten was not one of the better ones. They were actually small space heaters and there was a plug outlet on the speaker post. After about 20 minutes, with the temperature continually dropping I took it to the concession stand to replace it.

The kid working the counter couldn't be bothered, so I walked around the counter - ignoring his complaints and walked to the stairs to the projection room. My friend was both the manager and projectionist. I told him about the faulty heater and the attitude I had gotten downstairs. I had to wait five minutes for a reel change, but he led me down and handed me another heater. As I left, he was chewing out the counter help, but good. I never saw that kid there again.

With a good heater, things got toasty in the car quickly, but Maki was apparently comfortable and stayed where she was. After the first feature, the lot thinned down to only five or six cars. The second movie was an early X-rated 'Blue' movie. When I knew what it was, I asked Maki if she wanted to leave, but she said no, she wanted to see what these movies were about. As the movie started, she shifted about a little, so I put my arm around her and she seemed more comfortable.

It was a really stupid flick. I don't remember much about it now, except it was called 'Running Through the Jungle'. I vaguely remember two poorly done soft porn sex scenes, and the rest of it seemed to be about a bunch of people running naked in the woods, chasing, being chased, or just running. One of the worst scenes in the movie was some fat woman running through a clearing and slapping herself in the face with her own huge flopping tits. If I am not mixing it up with another movie, it ended with a nude wedding - the bride was pregnant and all of the males at the wedding lined up after to bang the new bride as the credits rolled. It was probably the stupidest feature I ever remember seeing, and I've seen some doozies (Hell, Amazon Women on the Moon and The Groove Tube were better - at least they pretended to have a plot, or plots). A few times during the movie I thought Maki had fallen asleep, but then she would have some reaction to one of the scenes and I'd know she was still awake. By the time the thing was over, I was wishing I hadn't been.

On the way back to the apartment, we'd discussed the movies. Maki liked the first feature though she thought it was dumb, the dialog didn't match the action. We had quite a discussion about how the soundtracks were redubbed into what someone 'thought' would sell to a US audience. Often killing whatever story there was. I told her that they were mostly just guy movies and I only went to see the fight sequences. She said she thought the second movie was just stupid and I agreed with her.

We then discussed some of the other adult features which were out, and how most at least pretended to have a plot. (Actually, I talked about them. Maki just listened and asked if there were really some good ones out.) Then we talked about movies that had a decent plot, but how more and more directors thought they had to have a sex scene and flashing tits or it would not sell.

On the way back, I'd stopped and bought a pizza. In the studio, I opened myself a beer and started digging out paper plates and napkins (I actually used cloth napkins back then). Maki had gone to use the bathroom and start the tub filling - I'd reminded her she should take a moisture bath. When she came out, she had stripped to her normal panty and T combination. I told her to get what she wanted for a drink and I went to the bathroom. When I arrived in the bathroom, Maki's pants and a pair of panties were draped over the shower rail. The crotches of both were damp.